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The worst summer trend ever

Never leave anything alive in a car in the summer. Ever.

The casket of 2-year-old Maximus Huyskens is carried out of Holy Rosary Catholic Church following the funeral in Milton, Ontario, July 3, 2013. The boy died last week after being left in a hot car by his grandmother.Photo: (Tyler Anderson/National Post)

Every summer, animals and children die because their caregivers lock them in hot cars.

Let’s be clear: The temperature of a car parked in the summer heat can reach 70 degrees celcius within minutes. This is enough to cause heat stroke, dehydration and death. This occurs faster than you can duck into a store for a carton of milk.

So far this summer:

Edmonton

In Edmonton, a three-year-old girl is dead after being left in a car during a heat wave in the city. Police are investigating, but it’s not clear right now how long the girl was left alone in the car.

Tampa Bay

A toddler in Tampa Bay, Florida, was left alone in a hot car while his parents attended a funeral at the end of June. The three-year-old boy was left in the car for three hours and police believe it may have been an accident. An investigation continues.

Milton

A two-year-old Ontario boy died in June when he was left in a hot car for “an extended period of time.” He was allegedly in the care of his grandmother at the time.

Markham

In another part of Ontario, a mother was charged when emergency crews rescued her 2-year-old girl from a hot car in a parking lot.

Everywhere

This problem isn’t limited to Canada, the United States or any other country that experiences summer. NBC is reporting that 8 children in the United States have already died from being locked in hot cars in 2013.

This website is tracking the overall number of children who have been killed by heatstroke in the United States and is already at 15 for 2013.

In the past 15 years, 575 children have died being locked in hot cars. That’s to say nothing of the pets left in hot cars in far greater numbers in summer months around the world.

So, just so everyone realizes, there’s one takeaway message from these tragedies: